1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a product dispensing system, and more specifically, to a product dispensing system that is designed to dispense in both manual and automatic actuation modes and that has visual communication elements defined by one or more surface variations.
2. Description of the Background of the Invention
Rooms in homes, businesses and other locations, such as hotels, restaurants, locker rooms, and the like, frequently have an unpleasant or neutral odor that pervades throughout them. The smell of a room is directly tied to the experience that an individual perceives while being located in the room. However, if the home or business employs an automated dispensing system, the dispensing system may disperse the product at times that do not correlate to a user's visit or that do not account for an unexpected olfactory occurrence, e.g., a pet spending time in a room or garbage being left out for an extended period of time. Therefore, it is desirable to have a dispensing device capable of dispersing a product on an automatic basis in the typical course of use while at the same time allowing manual actuation of the dispensing device at appropriate and specifically desired times, e.g., right before a guest visits a home or business.
Bathrooms are particularly challenging rooms for homes and businesses to maintain pleasant odors therein. Bathrooms are a common source of unpleasant odors due to mildew and human waste, and individuals frequently desire to remove the odor and/or mask the unpleasant odor with a more desirable fragrance and/or odor neutralizer. A home or business owner may desire to disperse a pleasant odor through the bathroom on an automated basis, while an individual who uses a bathroom may desire to actuate a dispensing device at some point before, during, or after using the bathroom. Frequently, individuals keep an automatic fragrance device, such as an exposed fragrance gel, in the bathroom that is used to disperse a fragrance automatically on a continuous basis. In contrast, other individuals keep a handheld dispensing device, such as a dispensing device with a trigger, in the bathroom for manual actuation when it is desirable. Further, businesses or other commercial sites typically use large wall mounted devices that only allow for the automatic spraying of fluid. Regrettably, the dispensing devices designed for use in bathrooms are not typically designed to provide automated actuation over an ongoing basis while at the same time allowing for a manual actuation boost on an as-needed basis.
Another common problem facing the rooms of homes and businesses is the controlling of pests, such as mosquitoes, ants, spiders and the like. Individuals frequently place a pest control device in a room with a pest issue and allow the device to disperse an insecticide or other pest-control product on an automated basis. The automation of the device allows pests to be combated even if the individual is not present in the room. On some occasions, individuals encounter pests directly and wish to spray them with the same pest-control dispensing device. Unfortunately, pest control devices typically have not been designed to effectuate both automated actuation and manual actuation to accomplish both goals of an individual eliminating pests by spraying the pest control product directly on or near the pest and having the pest control dispensing device disperse product automatically. Therefore, it would be desirable to have a pest control device that is designed to automatically dispense, but can be easily and comfortably actuated when an individual confronts a pest directly.
Dispensing devices using aerosol containers have been popular and commonly used to store and dispense a product such as air freshening agents, deodorants, insecticides, germicides, decongestants, perfumes, or any other known product. Actuation of an aerosol container typically includes the manual or automatic displacement of a valve stem. In automated dispensing devices, conventional actuator mechanisms may include motor driven linkages that actuate the valve stem to open an aerosol valve within the container. Other actuator mechanisms may include solenoid valves that effect fluid dispensing from aerosol containers when energized. Many types of dispensers such as hand sanitizers, fragrance dispensers, insecticide devices, and the like may utilize any of the aforementioned actuator mechanisms.
Automated actuation systems operably attach to the container and valve stem in various ways. For example, some existing automated actuation systems are contained within a housing unit, which is also adapted to receive the container therein. These types of automated actuation systems may include complicated and large camming mechanisms that require a significant amount of space in the housing, which in turn requires the housing to be larger. Automated actuation systems also typically include at least one button and/or switch that is designed to control the operational parameters of an automated sequence.
Heretofore, dispensing devices have been designed and utilized as either a manual dispensing device or an automated dispensing device, but typically not as both. Automated dispensing devices do not require a user to actuate the valve stem and frequently use a timer, sensor, or other mechanism to control actuation. A drawback of automated devices is habituation by the user to the substance being dispensed and a lack of user control to be able to provide a boost or increase of product as discussed in the various examples provided herein. In other cases, a user may want to increase the fragrance for other reasons, but is unable to provide immediate actuation using a dispensing device designed for automatic actuation. A drawback of manually actuated dispensing devices is that the devices are not capable of operating without human intervention.
Even though some devices are physically capable of being used in both manual and automatic actuation modes, such devices typically are not designed for use in both operating conditions and/or suffer drawbacks related thereto. Some automated dispensing devices have tried to address the aforementioned problem by providing a manual actuation button. However, the manual actuation button has been typically provided on automated dispensing devices in a location that is awkward, confusing, and non-intuitive. In particular, such buttons are typically provided on the inside of a dispensing device or on a portion of the dispensing device, such as a lower third, in a location grasped by the user when the user holds the device (i.e., gripping area) during manual operation thereof. Manual actuation buttons disposed in a gripping area of the device frequently cause inadvertent actuation when a user grasps the dispensing device and accidentally presses the manual actuation button.
An additional obstacle with respect to existing actuation systems is the containment of the actuation mechanisms within bulky and cumbersome housings. Such housings are difficult to grasp and hold, which can lead to the housing being improperly used. For example, the user may inadvertently grasp the housing around an upper portion thereof adjacent an outlet orifice and the user's hand may contact the product during the spraying operation.
Further, manual actuation buttons disposed on the same surface or adjacent to a dispensing orifice of the device presents another challenge. Namely, the user must grasp the device and position her hand around the device to reach the manual actuation button, while at the same time orienting the device outwardly, such that the material is sprayed away from the user through the dispensing orifice. The aforementioned positioning is uncomfortable and awkward for many users. Additionally, due to the non-ergonomic nature of many of the known dispensing devices, users are less likely to hold and use the product on a frequent basis due to hand strain. Still further, women between the ages of 30 and 50 are the most common users of the aforementioned types of dispensing devices and are, on average, able to sustain a gripping force between about 25 N to about 35 N for a time period adequate to hold and spray the dispensing devices disclosed herein. Therefore, it is desirable to provide a dispensing device that is comfortable for the typical user to grasp and hold the dispensing device during use thereof.
Another drawback to existing actuation systems is that the devices may be confusing for the user to operate. In particular, the user may find it difficult or non-intuitive in how to orient the housing properly for spraying. The propensity for improper orientation may be exacerbated in situations where there is a desire to omit written communication elements for orienting the user so as to create an aesthetically pleasing housing that a user will keep out within plain view. A need therefore exists to provide an aesthetically pleasing housing that users will want to keep out in plain sight and that also provides an intuitive means to communicate the proper orientation of the housing to effect proper spraying.
Therefore, it is desirable to have a product dispensing device that overcomes obstacles associated with prior art dispensing devices. In particular, it is desirable to provide a dispensing device that is specifically designed to be used in both a manual actuation mode and an automatic actuation mode. The design elements incorporated into the dispensing device address specific problems as discussed herein. For example, it is advantageous to locate control switches in locations that do not allow accidental actuation of the dispensing device. It is further advantageous to minimize the footprint of the housing of the dispensing system by using a vertically stacked camming mechanism. A smaller housing is not only visually pleasing, it provides for increased ease of actuation and saves money in manufacturing costs.
An additional benefit of the dispensing devices disclosed herein is that they are all-in-one actuation units that are capable of being displayed in a home or business at all times, i.e., always out, because of both the aesthetic qualities of the dispenser and the communication elements provided thereon. In particular, a user can easily grasp and manually actuate the dispenser without leaving the room, even if the dispenser is operating in an automatic dispensing state. The all-in-one aspect of the dispensing device eliminates the need for a user to keep two separate devices in a single room and/or leave the room to search for a separate dispensing device when manual actuation is desired. Use of the dispensing devices disclosed herein also minimizes the number of dispensing devices that a user must keep in their home or business.
The present disclosure provides a further solution to the above problems through the use of one or more non-written communication elements on a housing of a product dispensing device provided in the form of one or more surface variations. The communication element(s) guides the user in proper handling and usage of the device in an intuitive way. In particular, the user should understand how to pick up the device and actuate it, at least in part by using the communication element(s) on the device. The communication element(s) is preferably decorative as well as informative so that the user is able to leave the device out in plain view within a home, office, or other setting. Indeed, the decorative nature of the communication element(s) allows a user to feel comfortable leaving the dispensing device out in the open in a room at all times, which saves a user the extra time and effort of having to obtain an additional dispenser when a different type of dispenser is desired. The present disclosure also provides for an ergonomic housing in which a user's hand can comfortably grasp the housing without significant hand strain.